Unfortunate Luck
by papercliped
Summary: Mako and Bolin are still living out on the streets, scrambling to get by. Despite this, Bolin is still curious about everything and manages to get himself caught in a sticky situation, and to be saved by a mysterious girl.


Mako wasn't happy. His little brother had been beat up two times this week, and it wasn't even Thursday. He loved Bolin but the boy had a knack for getting into sticky situations. Orphans out on the streets where supposed to stay low, but Bolin's curiosity always got the better of him.

"What were you thinking? Just because someone isn't being 'nice' doesn't mean you go up and tell them!" Mako yelled, "Spirits, Bo, your only eleven! Your bending hasn't even developed yet!" Wrong thing to say. Bolin's eyes pooled with tears and his bottom lip quivered.

"Do you think I'll be a firebender like you?" He whimpered.

"Nah, I bet you'll be something even better" Mako assured him gently, pulling his brother into a hug. Bolin tugged on Mako's scarf, "I want Mommy and Daddy" he whispered, sounding just like he did when he was five their parents had gone out for the day. He had thought they were never coming back. That was the year before it happened. Mako pushed away the memories of that day in the rain. The rain he cursed for not saving them.

"I know" he murmured.

Bolin was digging in a garbage can, looking for something, anything, that he and Mako could eat when Kahn approached him. Kahn was the kind of kid who enjoyed firebending the the crap out of helpless children. Mako always called him a coward, but that didn't make Bolin any less scared of him. Bolin froze in terror as Kahn sauntered up to him and grabbed him by his collar. He struggled to break free of the older boys grip but wasn't nearly strong enough.

"I think your face could use a little reshaping" Kahn hissed as he pulled back his steaming fist. Bolin flinched and turned away, hoping not to get burned too badly. Kahn was about to strike when a chunk of rock slammed into his side knocking him and Bolin to the ground. Bolin looked up and saw a girl that couldn't be more than a year older than himself. He gaped at her then turned his attention back to Kahn, who was rising from the ground swearing.

"Nobody challenges me!" Kahn growled at the girl. He yelled and charged her, fists blazing with fire. The girl stood her ground for a few seconds then put her fists eye level and jerked them upward. A wall of earth erupted from the ground right in front of Kahn, who slammed right into it, knocking him out.

"Fool" the girl said, grinning evilly. She walked over to Bolin who shrunk back. "Come on, I don't bite" the girl said holding out her hand to help him up. He finally got a good look at her. The girl looked about his age, with jet black hair twisted messily back into a short braid and secured with a green headband. She had unnaturally pale green eyes that gave Bolin the creeps.

"I'm Sada. Who are you anyway?" she inquired.

"Bolin" he muttered.

"Pardon?"

"I said my name is Bolin" he answered more forcefully, "Why did you help me?"

Sada thought it over for a moment, "Not sure. I guess I just didn't want that jerk to hurt any other innocent kid." she decided, "Hey, aren't you Mako's brother?"

"How do you know my brother?" Bolin whimpered.

"Your mom babysat me and we played together as kids, you were to little to remember. My mom used to have your parents babysit me" she said. Neither of them said anything for a few moments but Sada broke the silence.

"You aren't a firebender, like him, are you?"

Bolin shrugged shyly.

"I'd bet my bending that you're an earthbender." she announced, "Good luck, Bolin! When you see your brother again tell him that Sada Beifong says 'Hey'"

And with that she sprinted off, leaving Bolin to ponder her last name with awe.

"Mako! Mako! I met a Beifong! Mako!" Bolin cried as he neared their camp; a bunch of rags squeezed into a hollowed out area of a wall.

"What is it, Bo?" Mako asked, poking his head out of the gap.

"Who's Sada Beifong? How did you know her? Why do you know her? Wh-"

Mako cut him off, "Slow down Bo. How do you know Sada? You're too young to remember her"

"Well... she kind of saved me from being beat up by Kahn" Bolin confessed.

"She what? Oh never mind. Anyway, Sada is Chief Beifong's daughter. She used to have Mom watch her while she was at work, because her dad left before she was born. I haven't seen her since our parent's funeral" Mako explained, wincing when he mentioned the funeral.

Bolin gazed at his brother in awe until Mako broke the silence.

"Come on bro. You should get to bed. You've had a long day"

Two weeks later, Bolin was sitting on a park bench with his brother, waiting for the man sitting next to them to finish his newspaper and throw it away. Bolin loved newspapers. He had a stack of them in their little alcove. He would pour over the pages for hours, letting the daily happenings of Republic City pile up in his brain.

Finally, the man stood up and tossed the newspaper in the trash bin, shaking his head subtly. Bolin scrambled to the trash can and picked out the paper, eager to see why the man had been upset. He opened up to the first page available and gasped.

At the top of the page there was a picture of a smiling girl with black hair and translucent green eyes. The caption read "Blind Daughter of Chief Beifong Killed"

It was Sada.

Bolin stared at the newspaper in horror. Mako looked over his brother's shoulder and took the newspaper from him. He sat down and started to read, Bolin peering at the newspaper from behind him.

Yesterday night, 12-year-old Sada Beifong was walking home and was attacked from above by a 15-year-old firebender known as Kahn. Being blind, she was unable to see her attacker and was killed from major burns. Kahn confessed that he acted out of revenge. She had hurt him a couple weeks ago. Sada's mother has had her daughter's killer arrested and taken into custody. We have learned that Sada was an earthbender with special senses that allowed her to 'see' that she inherited from her grandmother, Toph Beifong. Unfortunately it didn't help her when the end came. Sada Beifong will be missed.

Bolin sniffed and a single tear rolled down his cheek. "Mako" he whimpered, "It's my fault. She saved me. If she hadn't she would still be alive right now!" He buried his head into Mako's arm.

"It's not your fault Bo, you didn't make her help you." Mako said soothingly as his brother sobbed into his shoulder.

"Mako" Bolin said, taking his head out of brother's arm, "I don't want anyone else to die"

Bolin was sitting on his makeshift bed, staring at the grainy newsprint photograph of Sada, his brother asleep next to him. Mako was wrong, it was his fault she was dead. He thought about how she had said she would bet her bending that he was an earthbender. He was pretty sure she wouldn't have bet her life on it, but that hadn't mattered. He was probably just a non-bender.

Even though he barely knew her, he knew exactly what Sada would say to that. She would tell him to stop being negative and go find out.

So that was exactly what he was going to do.

Bolin scrambled to his feet and stepped out of the alcove careful not to wake his brother. He positioned himself like Sada had, feet apart, fists in front of him, light on his feet. Then he jerked his arms up as she had. Nothing. Not even the slightest rumble of the earth. But Bolin wasn't one to give up. He tried again and again, determined to succeed. Finally, after no success, told himself to give it one more go. He got into his position, took a deep breath, and jerked up his arms for the twelfth time that night. But this time there was something different. Something clicked. The ground erupted into a thin column as tall as Bolin.

"Mako! I can bend! I can bend! Wake up, Mako, I can bend!" Bolin cried with joy.

"Wah... Bo whatdya want" Mako replied sleepily.

"Come look Mako I can earthbend! Sada was right! She was right!"

Mako got up and rubbed his eyes then squinted his brother who earthbent another Bolin-sized column out of the ground. He gaped at his little brother in awe then swept him into a hug, both of them laughing hysterically.

"I told you you'd be something better!" Mako proclaimed happily.

Bolin just smiled. He knew that wherever Sada was now, she was smirking and telling him, "I told you so".


End file.
